Stress
by Anneka Neko
Summary: ONESHOT! Ginji's been injured and is in the hospital. NOT like episode 39! Ban's really worried, and doesn't have the patience to deal with Akabane when he shows up. BanxAkabane, hints of BanxGinji. WARNING: Rated for graphic description of bloodiness.


Authoress' Notes:

Recently one of my friends… well, she came close to suicide. It was scary, to say the least. Part of what got me was the sheer stress and guilt- I felt as though I should be able to do something, or should have done something before, and I knew I couldn't do anything. This story kind of started from that point.

Then I just plain felt morbid. Hehe. So yeah, umm… I'm not marking this as horror, since it's not per se, but there's some rather yucky description of an injury.

And finally- GinjixAkabane will always be a favorite of mine. But recently I've just wanted to try my hand at BanxAkabane.

So here's the result. The buildup/background is a little weak, I'm afraid. That just wasn't what I felt like writing, and this story had no planning whatsoever.

I'M NOT A DOCTOR! Don't expect me to know the inner workings of… muscles and… stuff.

DISCLAIMER: I DUN OWN ANYTHING!

**nyanyanyanyanya**

**Stress**

Ban sighed. The day had _not_ been good. The retrieval had started out ok, but once they had actually _gotten_ the disc they had been assigned to retrieve- ugh. Between Undead Hishiki (_WHAT THE HELL IS WITH THIS GUY?_ Ban thought,), automatic security systems and the gun-toting guards, Ban had had a lot of stress _before_ Ginji had gone and gotten himself _shot_!

Immediately abandoning the retrieval, Ban had rushed his partner, bleeding from the shoulder, to the hospital, pushing even the Ladybug's limits.

Now Ban stood in a deserted park near the hospital, leaning up against the base of a large statue. The statue, some general whose name no one bothered to remember, sat silently on his horse as Ban fumed, bathed in pure guilt and misery. Ginji was still in the emergency room. The bullet was close enough to his heart to cause some concern, which meant Ban had been kicked out while Ginji was in surgery. Unable to handle sitting in the waiting room, he'd told them to call his cell as soon as Ginji got out. Then he'd just wandered out here.

He closed his eyes, feeling panic well up within him. He knew, logically, that Ginji would be fine- but what if he _wasn't_? He felt as if the world was tilting and he couldn't find something to hold on to. He knew his whole world would shatter if Ginji d… if Ginji was gone.

Spinning around with a sudden scream, he pounded the base of the statue with all his might, punching until cracks appeared in the marble, until his knuckles bled. He halted, shaking with rage, breathing hard.

"My, Midou-kun," a very unwelcome voice purred. "Someone's in a bad mood."

"Fuck off, Jackal," Ban growled, not even bothering to turn around. He knew already that the other man was close enough to attack, but he wasn't worried. The Jackal liked to toy with his food first.

Ban almost wished the freak _would_ attack. At least then he's have someone to vent his anger and guilt on.

Akabane merely chuckled. "What's got you in such a mood, Midou-kun? Careful with the language- you should learn to _cut_ yourself off from your emotions," he said. Ban watched as the polished marble in front of him reflected a glowing scalpel being twirled around. He turned slowly around.

"Pity you and I can never see _eye-to-eye_ on that, Jackal," he returned, gripping his glasses threateningly.

Akabane stepped closer, startling Ban, as he spoke smoothly. "Why, Midou-kun, you've hurt your hand. Do you want me to take a look at it? I _am_ a doctor, after all."

A white-gloved hand snaked out to grip a bare one, and Ban flinched slightly, pulling back. When the Transporter's grip didn't loosen, Ban changed tactics. Twisting his hand around, Ban grasped the delicate hand, squeezing hard enough to bruise.

Neither man spoke a word as Ban slowly increased the pressure on the slender hand. Akabane's eyes watered slightly as a series of audible _snaps_ announced the breaking of one bone after another. He quickly marshaled his healing powers, but as he mended each bone, another was snapped. He was in pain, that much was obvious. But the pale face betrayed no such emotion. The eyes were once again dry, the face impassive, almost carefree.

For some reason, this infuriated Ban. Here he was, losing his mind with worry over his partner, and Akabane didn't even seem phased by a broken hand. He had an idea.

Squeezing sharply, Ban lowered his glasses. Akabane tried to avoid the blue gaze, but it was too late. As the violet eyes widened in pain, the spell was cast. Ban closed his own eyes to watch what was about to unfold.

---

Akabane found himself in front of the statue still, Midou-kun still gripping his hand. He shook his head slightly, wondering if he'd managed to avoid the Evil Eye, if he'd merely blinked.

"I've always wondered, Jackal," Midou-kun's voice growled. Akabane looked up to see himself reflected in those beautiful eyes.

"Do you even have a heart?" Akabane frowned, confused, as Midou-kun continued.

"I know how destroyed I'd be if I lost Ginji. Do you have anyone you care about?" Midou-kun laughed harshly, squeezing Akabane's throbbing hand even harder. "Besides yourself, I mean." Akabane grimaced slightly. His healing powers couldn't keep up with the constant pressure.

A grimace also came over Midou-kun's face, and even as Akabane wondered why, the retriever's grip loosened as he crumpled to the ground.

Akabane froze. Numbly, he noticed the wide, staring eyes, noticed the blood slowly staining the white shirt around the knife sticking through the front of Midou-kun's torso. He looked up and saw a teenager running away, laughing. Dizzy, he began to summon a scalpel to kill the child, but a loud voice suddenly said, "Just a minute!" and Akabane's world shattered.

---

Akabane returned to consciousness trying to stifle whimpers of pain. Ban, shocked at what he'd just seen, was squeezing so hard that little fragments of bone actually began ripping out through the glove, the blood dampening the sleeve of the trench coat.

Akabane weakly tried to step back, stopping with a gasp as the firm grip on his ruined hand held him fast. Amethyst eyes met sapphire.

Ban broke the uncomfortable silence. "Do… do you know what I wanted to show you?"

Akabane attempted a sweet smile, though it came out looking rather pained as Ban's grip remained firm. "I've no idea, Midou-kun."

"I… I wanted to show you… what I'm going through," Ban muttered uncomfortably, dropping his gaze. "I wanted you to watch the… the person you care about most die," he finished quickly.

"Hmm. Well, I suppose we both learned something tonight, Midou-kun," Akabane said. The facade of indifference was betrayed by the faintest quiver in the voice, the slightest hint of surprise. "Now I don't suppose you could let go of my hand?"

Ban jumped, dropping his hand as though burned. Akabane looked with interest at the hand. Blood was dripping out of it, as bones jutted out at odd angles and severed muscles lay tangled inside the torn skin.

Ban stared as, after a moment, the bones began to realign themselves. Muscle reattached, straightening out as holes in skin began to fill in. The glove was still ripped, covered in blood, but within a few minutes, Akabane's hand looked as good as new.

The Transporter pulled off his glove, examining his hand. He lightly stroked the rip he'd left untouched, a deep line caused when a bone had been pushed from the base of his thumb down to his wrist.

"Thank you, Midou-kun," he purred. "Not only have you given me something new to think about, you've also added to my collection." And with that he strode off into the night, leaving a staring Ban behind.

---

A few hours later, Ban and Ginji walked out of the hospital, the latter with his arm in a sling. The bullet, doctors had explained, had damaged a muscle, and the sling was the easiest way to immobilize it and assure recovery. Ban opened the passenger door so the Ginji wouldn't have to use his damaged limb. As he moved around to the driver's door, he paused, staring down the street. After a moment, he shook his head, looking harder. Surely that…

No. Nothing was there. _Just my imagination_, he thought.

Akabane Kurodou stepped out of the shadows, smiling faintly as he watched the car drive away. Lovingly tracing his newest scar, he walked down the street, blending into the shadows until he was lost from view.

**nyanyanyanyanya**

So, waddaya think? Please no comments telling me what I should or shouldn't do regarding my friend. I'm kinda trying to move past this little incident, ya know?

I would, however, HUGELY appreciate comments on the story! This is my first time doing this couple. Oh and you can read this as implying GinjixBan in either a romantic or a platonic way. I didn't really decide, and I think it's more fun if you can decide for yourself.

By the way, I know Akabane-sama generally wouldn't be affected by pain, but I figure a broken hand being squeezed literally to bits… I mean when Ginji 'sploded him with his scalpels, he shouted/screamed, ne?

And Ban's not being a smartass at the end 'cause he's like completely shocked. He'd thought he'd draw a blank on Akabane's person he cares about, so to find out it's _him_… I mean it'd be rather surprising, ne?

Did anyone get that theme of the world shattering? I was really, really proud of it! If not, maybe you could scroll back up, find it, and take a moment to think, "That was cool," or somethin'?

…please?

…it would bring joy into my life. -shameless, pathetic begging-

So yeah… please review!


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